Graphitti
by inomztietuseoe
Summary: My firt ZADR.  I'm trying to give it a halfdecent storyline but it is a first, so bear with me here.  Originally a oneshot.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello again, dear readers of my stuff! I've always wanted to do a ZADR, so, here it is! This was originally a oneshot, but I really want to continue on with the concept. I no longer have everyday access to the internet and may have some trouble doing my usual lengthy reviews and reading all of your stories regularly. For this, I apoligize. I will continue to try to give back to my good friends here at FF, but I can no longer promise as much as typical of myself. I will keep updating when I can, so please bear with me. Thank you for your patience.**

It was that same dream. I was hopelessly strapped to a cold autopsy table with some silloetted someone hovering over me, leaning in and staring as if I was a really interesting exhibit in a museum.

"Uncomfortable, Irken scum?" an all-too-familiar voice taunted. I must have nodded or somehow shown how very uncomfortable I was because they held a scalpel in one hand and grinned at it evilly. "Well don't worry." they cooed. "I'll put you out of your misery..." They leaned in with the blade. "...nice... and... slow..." They accented each word with a slice. I guess I was too shocked to notice the sting but the sound... the sound scared me more than I had ever thought possible. Every squelch made me writhe against the leather straps and hard metal table. With every movement of that blade I either vomited or screamed. I closed my eyes as tight as I could, squeezing out hot tears to roll down the sides of my face.

"No!" I whimpered. "Please stop it! Please! I-I-I'll do anything! Just stop! Please!" I heard them freeze, shocked. I opened one eye, just a sliver, to see the shadowed figure lean in closer until our faces were almost touching. I gulped and held my breath, hoping that I could just disappear, dissolve into nothing then and there.

"You have no idea of how long I've wanted to do this." they breathed in my face. "Probably even longer than you have." With that, I heard one final slice of the scalpel and my whole world went black.

_"You think you've got problems? What are you supposed to do if you _are _a manically depressed robot?"_

_-Marvin (the manically depressed robot _or_ the paranoid android)_

_The Hitch Hiker's Guide To The Galaxy_

_Douglas Adams_

The bell rang loudly to annonce the beginning of the skool day and my tardiness. I hadn't gotten much sleep that night due to the feeling of extreme anxiety saturated in my mind after the reappearance of a certain dream. "What's your excuse this time, Dib?" I mocked exactly what Mrs. Bitters was bound to say. I could usually answer honestly but I wasn't planning on explaining myself this time. Nightmares aren't exactly a legitamate reason to be late for skool.

"Hello, Dib." I jumped at the oh-to-familiar sound of Zim's pointlessly triumphant voice, echoing down the hallway.

"Zim! W-why are you heading to skool so late!?" I pointed at him in the strangest of poses, something I'd picked up from the alien himself.

"You're lying! I hide nothing from you, little pig-stink!" Zim shrieked, mirroring my pose. With that shriek, a bit of my nightmare flashed through my mind, making me flinch. The sound... the sound scared me more than I had ever thought possible. What scared me the most was that I was enjoying it. Every squelch made me shiver with delight. I heard a voice begging, pleading with me to stop what I was doing. I couldn't stop. I couldn't shake the feeling of power that made me feel so sick. I couldn't make myself stop. I begged with myself to stop. I just kept on...

"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" I screamed at myself, covering my head with my hands and shaking it fiercely. "Leave me alone! Stop it! Stop it! No!" I heard another slice of the scalpel and closed my eyes as tight as I could, squeezing out hot tears to roll down the sides of my face. "No!" I screamed. By God, how I screamed, "Please stop it! Please! I-I-I'll do anything! Just stop! Please!" I was shivering like mad, fighting with myself to silence that image. That image that tore me apart and brought me down, hard, to my knees.

"Dib-stink?" Zim's frantic voice pounded into my head. It sounded far-away, as if I was underwater. "Dib-stink? Dib-stink!?" I felt a spasm in my gut and instinctively stood up, stumbled to the men's room, crashing into everything possible to crash into on the way. I eventually made it to one of the stalls, kneeling in front of the toilet and leaning against it desparately. I felt a torrent of vomit leave my system just as someone else entered the room and ran towards me. I gripped the toilet seat desperately, as if it was the only solid thing on Earth. A voice incoherently said something behind me. My head was swimming. I felt cold sweat bead up on my forehead. I couldn't see or hear clearly.

"What's wrong with me?"

"What's wrong with you?" Zim asked. With that, I heard one final slice of the scalpel and my whole world went black.

_"That was sadder than I expected."_

_-Zim_

_Mopiness Of Doom_

_Invader Zim_

_Jhonen Vasquez_

"He's coming to, Sir."

"Excellent, Simmons. Do you hear that, Daughter? Your brother is going to be alright!"

"Uh-huh. Whatever, Dad." My head felt like a rock was continuously smashing against it. I tried to open my eyes but they just rolled back into my skull the moment the light hit them.

"What about the other kid, Sir? He's still waiting, just outside."

"You may let him in, I suppose. Meanwhile, I have to go meet with the EPA about the whole apocolypse experiment."

"Yes, Sir."

_"My God, you're stupid."_

_-Bob_

_Wobbly Headed Bob_

_Jhonen Vasquez_

What was I doing? I was stuck, waiting for something. The whole day was a blur. The last thing I could remember was waking up to yell at Gir about all of the noise he was making by doing who-knows-what. Just then, the Gaz-human came from the large door on the other side of the room, along with a very tall, laughing person in a long, white coat.

"You can go on in to see him now, son." the tall man said, before leaving the room. Stink-sister sneered at me before leaving the room as well. I remained still for a few minutes, trying to remember why I was here. Nothing. I couldn't remember anything. Well, I supposed that going along with whatever was going on couldn't hurt. So, I slowly stood up and worked my way towards the door.

_"I think we were saved by a mysterious orange blur."_

_-Leela_

_Three Hundred Big Boys_

_Futurama_

_Matt Groening_

"Oww..." I tried to sit up but that just worsened my headache. I swore under my breath and just lay back down.

"It'd probably be better if you didn't move. I'll be back to check up on your vitals in a half-hour or so." I opened one eye a bit to see Simmons, my dad's assistant, leaving the room. "Oh! There you are. Keep an eye on him, will you?" I saw him smile and leave the doorway where he apparently had bumped into someone much shorter than himself.

"Umm... Okay." a timid voice said. I couldn't quite put my finger on it but the voice seemed strangely familiar. I heard footsteps get closer and I closed my eyes again, not really wanting to know who was approaching me. I heard a heavy gasp. "You!"

"Hmmmm? What?" I mumbled, keeping my eyes shut against the light.

"Dib-human! Why have you brought me here? What's going on? Oh, and, why are you um... smaller than usual? You look very stupid."

"Z-zim? Why are you here? For that matter, why am I here?" I asked, opening my eyes to squint at him and lifting a hand to block the pointlessly bright light above. I saw him shrug. "What do you mean, 'smaller than usual'?" Zim grabbed my shoulders and sat me up. He squinted and glared at me.

"What's wrong with your eyes?" he asked. "They're all..." he flexed one of his hands, searching for the right word. "...squished. You aren't wearing your eye-sheild things either. With you like this, I could just..." With one swift movement, he poked both of my eyes with his two gloved fingers.

"Ouch!" I yelped. "Why'd you do that?" He shrugged again.

"'Cause I could."

"Whatever." I mumbled. "Where're my glasses?"

"What? These?" He picked them up out of nowhere and held them in front of his face. I couldn't help it. I laughed. "What?" he asked, the glasses making his eyes look even bigger than usual, which was really saying something.

"You look so weird with glasses on, Zim." I snickered. He glared at me and threw the glasses at my face. "Gee, thanks."

"Well, you you look really stupid. Glasses or not." he hissed, folding his arms across his chest and sticking his worm of a tongue out at me. It was so funny-looking. I felt like I could just reach out and grab it.

"Well, I may look stupid but it's better than being stupid, like someone I know." I sneered. He brushed it off with another pointless wave of his hand. "Not to mention all of the weird things about you." I offered.

"Like what?" he snapped sarcasticly.

"Your tongue, for instance? What the heck is it like that for? It's to small to alter your speech or taste much of anything and you never flicker it around like a snake does, so you don't use it to smell stuff. Seriously, what's up with that?" I took his brief silence as an opportunity to put my glasses on and get comfortable on the hospital-cot-thing.

"Ha!" he scoffed loudly. "You could never comprehend the amazing power of my tongue! Look at yours!" I yelped slightly as he opened my mouth and pulled on my tongue, making my eyes water a bit. "It's so... so... It looks like you left it on one of your traintracks while a train passed by! I'm surprised you don't choke on this fat thing!"

"Augh-ah-ah-ah-ahyaugh!" He finally let go. "Ow." Zim stuck his tongue out at me again. It was payback time. I snatched the jointed thing out of the air and tugged.

"Yaaaughuaugh!" he screamed, instinctively gritting his teeth and biting his tongue horribly. He held his breath for a moment and then screamed, releasing his tongue to reveal tons of dark-green liquid around his teeth and lips. Time seemed to freeze. He was screaming his head off, but I could only pay attention to his mouth. His tongue still in hand, I seemed to drown in the pools of blood dripping from his lips and rolling down his chin to stain anything below. It was so very dark, like you could just fall into it's depth and curl up there forever.

"Wow." I muttered, just before one of Zim's gloved hands clawed me back into reality, making me release him. He scratched over my eye, and broke my glasses. My entire left lense was gone, and my eyebrow and cheek were probably bleeding. "Dammit, Zim!" I covered my bad eye with a hand and searched the room for my attacker. I spotted him in the corner, glaring at me. He cupped a hand under his chin and caught a bit of the blood. Looking at it, his eyes widened and he hissed. Maybe it really hurt or maybe he was just pissed.

"Dib." he said, a bit so calmly for comfort. "Do you realize what you've just done?" He walked back up to me, a bit to close for comfort. "Well," he said. "Do you?" he yelled, thrusting his bloody hand in my face and pushing my hand away to reveal my own blood. "You..." He put his claws over my eye. "...have..." He swirled his hand around, mixing the red and green together. "...trapped..." He grabbed my wrist, examining his own blood on my fingers. "...both..." He scowled at the blood. "...of..." He removed his hands from me and leaned in towards me, a hint of pain about him. "...us." I stared at him, petrified. I still couldn't help but gaze at the blood smeared on his face. I probably looked worse. "I've always feared that this might happen, perhaps longer than you have." He clawed my shoulder violently and with that ripping noise, I blacked out again.

_"Yadde yadde. Honto ni baka na?" [Good grief. You really are an idiot, aren't you?_

_Black Mage (to Fighter)_

_Final Fantasy A+_

"Die! Die! Die! Die! Die!" I snarled at my GameSlave2. I was finally on the final level of Piggy Necrocide Ultimate Edition and I didn't plan on using any of my extra lives.

**Well, here's the first installment. I hope you enjoyed it. I would love to hear from you via reviews, e-mails, PMs or even phone calls! Even the shortest of feedback helps me write! Thank you again for your patience! I would also welcome quote suggestions for the next chapter. Until next time, arigatougozaimasu!**


	2. Chapter 2

**What be up, my good friends? I give you more of my mindless word-vomit.**

I was unable to do much without worsening my headache. I tried to talk, but I couldn't really tell if my mouth was working right. I couldn't do anything. I couldn't see or hear anything…. I realized I wasn't breathing. I didn't need to. It was like I was asleep, only without even realizing it. This was too weird. I had to think. What was the last thing that I could remember? Falling… no, being lowered into… into… water? Warm, thick, liquid… what?

"_If I only had a brain that didn't run solely on toothpaste… 'Cause now I can only think minty-minty-freshness thoughts!"_

_-Me_

_Yes, I quote myself_

_Shut up_

"Computer?" I groaned.

"What?" It whined back.

"Isn't there anything you can do to reverse th-"

"No, Master. There isn't." I massaged my temples in frustration. "I've been telling you this for over seven hours now. He's starting to regain consciousness."

"Do something to keep him inactive. Reroute some Earth-music into his brainwaves or something."

"Synchronizing brainwaves with sound waves." I collapsed into a chair in front a control panel and spun it around with one leg, letting my eyes close for the moment so I could think.

"Can I listen too?" I breathed. I always had been fond of some of the human entertainment. Just moments later, hidden speakers boomed around the whole base.

_BEAT ME UP._

_  
BEAT ME DOWN._

_  
MESS ME UP,_

_  
BEYOND ALL RECOGNITION.  
_

My world began to throb. It was as if I was shouting out of every pore. I felt like I was being torn apart.

_  
FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH,_

_I'D DO IT AGAIN._

_  
WITH NO CONSEQUENCE,_

_  
I WILL DO IT AGAIN.  
_

This was one of my favorite pastimes on this pitiful planet. The blasting music was the perfect balance between violence and sound.

_  
HARD UP,_

_SO, HUNT ME DOWN._

_DOWN._

_DOWN._

My eyes popped open, along with my mouth. My spine arched. My body stretched to its fullest potential. The music filled me to the point of being all that I was aware of. I let it take full control of me.

_  
JUMP THE GUN,_

_BUST A CAP,_

_HIT THE GROUND.  
_

I mouthed the oh-so-familiar words. This always made me feel much better, no matter what was going on.

__

YO. YO. YO. WORD.

_  
MY TENDANCY'S NEVER RETURNED._

_  
RECEIVED LIKE A BIG FAT JERK._

_  
I'VE BEEN SILLY, BUT NOT ABSURD._

I screamed. At least, I think I did. It was like I was dying; only it felt good. My pulse increased. I felt it pound inside me with the blasting music.

'_CAUSE YOU KNOW THAT'S WHAT I HEARD._

_  
TELL YA THOUGHTS THAT MOST IMPURE._

_  
SO EVERYTHING'S SPLENDID, SURE._

_  
I JUST HERE TO INJURE.  
_

I jumped up almost automatically. The thud of GIR falling down the elevator shaft was drowned out by the music.

"Yay! We dancin'!" he screeched. GIR always enjoyed it when I let him listen to music, let alone when I started it.

_  
ON THE FENCE._

_  
THE CONSEQUENCE._

_  
WHAT DO THEY KNOW ABOUT THAT?  
_

I don't think I'd ever heard the song before, but it seemed to swell from inside my very core, as if it was mine, my thoughts, my voice, my power.

_  
ON THE TRACK,_

_  
AHEAD IN THE BACK,_

_  
WHAT DO THEY KNOW ABOUT THAT?  
_

Once GIR started to sing along, I couldn't help it, I joined in. Screaming until it hurt to breathe.

__

BEAT ME UP.

_  
BEAT ME DOWN._

_  
MESS ME UP,_

_  
BEYOND ALL RECOGNITION._

I felt like I was going to explode if I held still for much longer. My heart was bursting inside of my ribcage. The pure adrenaline was enough to make anyone scream.

_FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH,_

_I'D DO IT AGAIN._

_  
WITH NO CONSEQUENCE,_

_  
I WILL DO IT AGAIN.  
_

I ran out of breath steadily, but I couldn't stop. Everything started to mix together, but I couldn't stop. There was nothing I could do.

_HARD UP,_

_SO, HUNT ME DOWN._

_DOWN._

_DOWN._

My head was pounding. It was too loud. The mere pressure of the sound was bone-crushing.

_JUMP THE GUN,_

_BUST A CAP,_

_HIT THE GROUND._

I was still screaming. Every scrap of energy I had was bursting from me, and then some. I couldn't take much more. I let myself fall to the ground, panting.

__

YO. YO. YO. WORD.

_  
MY TENDANCY'S NEVER RETURNED._

_  
RECEIVED LIKE A BIG FAT JERK._

_  
I'VE BEEN SILLY, BUT NOT ABSURD._

I choked and felt a bit of hot, metallic-tasting liquid creep up through my throat.

_  
'CAUSE YOU KNOW THAT'S WHAT I HEARD._

_  
TELL YA THOUGHTS THAT MOST IMPURE._

_  
SO EVERYTHING'S SPLENDID, SURE._

_  
I JUST HERE TO INJURE._

"Master?"

__

ON THE FENCE.

_  
THE CONSEQUENCE._

_  
WHAT DO THEY KNOW ABOUT THAT?_

My spine cracked with the loud blast of the music.

__

ON THE TRACK.

_  
AHEAD OF THE PACK._

_WHAT DO THEY KNOW ABOUT THAT?_

"Master!?"

__

I'M QUITE DEPRESSED.

_  
I'M QUITE A MESS._

I felt myself throw up. I cried out in the strange liquid I was suspended in, just before I passed out.

__

HEY, SOMEONE TO STAB IN THE BACK.

_  
HEY, SOMEONE TO FALL THROUGH THE CRACK._

_  
HEY, SOMEONE TO PUNCH IN THE FACE._

_  
HEY, SOMEONE TO FALL THROUGH THE CRACK._

The music quieted slightly, and I felt a surge of electricity restore my energy. I sprang to my feet. "What?"

"Master! The human has lost consciousness. The health scan you asked for shows that he is not well."

"Not well?" I asked.

"His body temperature is dropping, brain functions are at a minimum, and pulse is steadily growing faint…. He is not well."

"What? Computer, take me to the medical containment wing." I rubbed my temples again as the floor raised up until I was completely below the surface.

__

WRITTEN ALL OVER MY FACE.

I fell onto a cold, flat surface. My entire body ached.

_WRITTEN ALL OVER MY FACE._

I finally regained my composure and looked at the human sprawled on the floor a few feet in front of me. "Disgusting." I hissed, turning the human over with one metallic spider leg and cradling his head with another.

_WRITTEN ALL OVER MY FACE._

I cracked one eye open, but I couldn't see anything.

_WRITTEN ALL OVER MY FACE._

"Computer, run medical scan again."

"Fine." The machines around the room whirred.

_WRITTEN ALL OVER MY FACE._

I heard a voice, a familiar voice. I opened my mouth and took a shaky breath. "Zim?" I breathed, the name stinging my throat horribly.

_WRITTEN ALL OVER MY FACE._

I jumped when I heard my name, dropping the boy. It took me a moment to realize where it had come from. It seemed so strange, the Dib hadn't seemed like he could move, let alone talk. His head hit the ground with a thud.

_WRITTEN ALL OVER MY FACE._

"Ow…" I blacked out again, or maybe I was just tired enough to think that I did.

_WRITTEN ALL OVER MY FACE._

"Medical scan complete. He's unconscious again."

"Ah!" I yelped. The human had spit out a strange, dark liquid when his head hit the floor. "What?"

"Well, he is still technically alive. He has a bit of a virus in his system. He is suffering from malnutrition and severe stress. Also, he seems to be in the middle of his species metamorphoses."

"Meta-what now?"

_  
JUMP THE GUN,_

_BUST A CAP,_

_HIT THE GROUND._

YO. YO. YO. WORD.

_  
MY TENDANCY'S NEVER RETURNED._

_  
RECEIVED LIKE A BIG FAT JERK._

_  
I'VE BEEN SILLY, BUT NOT ABSURD._

_  
'CAUSE YOU KNOW THAT'S WHAT I HEARD._

_  
TELL YA THOUGHTS THAT MOST IMPURE._

_  
SO EVERYTHING'S SPLENDID, SURE._

_  
I JUST HERE TO INJURE._

ON THE FENCE.

_  
THE CONSEQUENCE._

_WHAT DO THEY KNOW ABOUT THAT?_

_ON THE TRACK,_

_  
AHEAD IN THE BACK,_

_  
WHAT DO THEY KNOW ABOUT THAT?_

I'M QUITE DEPRESSED.

_  
I'M QUITE A MESS.  
_

**A weird chapter, I know…. I'll update soon, I promise! "What Do They Know?" belongs to Mindless Self Indulgence. I usually detest songfics, but here I am practically writing one. Fear irony. Reviews are excellent. I know I'm sort of stringing you guys along as to what is going on, but most of your questions will be answered/weaseled out of in the next chapter.**


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